The Strangers: Chapter 3 Continues Trilogy’s Bad RT Trend

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Renny Harlin has concluded his reboot of The Strangers with the release of The Strangers: Chapter 3. However, critics have continued to react negatively, and the film’s initial reviews and Rotten Tomatoes score show a downward trend consistent with the rest of the series.

The Strangers: Chapter 3 reviews and Rotten Tomatoes score stay bad

Rotten Tomatoes critics gave ‘The Strangers: Chapter 3’ a low score of 15%, based on 13 reviews. Audience ratings aren’t yet available, as fewer than 50 verified viewers have submitted feedback. The film, directed by Renny Harlin, centers on Maya (Madelaine Petsch) as she battles the masked attackers in a climactic showdown.

William Bibbiani of TheWrap criticized the film, stating that instead of improving on a successful formula, it unnecessarily ruined it. In a review for The New York Times, Erik Piepenburg called the main character, Maya, a generic and uninspired ‘final girl,’ fitting for the film’s disappointing conclusion.

David Robb of Slant Magazine gave the film a very low rating of 1 out of 4 stars, suggesting it could have explored darker themes. Matt Donato from Inverse was even more critical, giving it just half a star out of five and joking that the film harmed the reputation of the original ‘The Strangers’ and deserved a lawsuit.

Carla Hay from Culture Mix criticized the final film in this horror reboot series, calling the ending both predictable and unsatisfying. Julian Roman of MovieWeb gave it a 1/5 rating, describing the climax as ridiculous and stating that the entire franchise was a boring collection of familiar horror clichés.

As a film fan, I’ve been reading up on this movie, and a couple of critics really focused on the acting. Hailey Passmore at Nerdspin gave it a C+, but specifically called out Madelaine Petsch’s performance and how expressive she was. Maitland McDonagh also felt the performances of both Basso and Petsch were strong enough to make the film worth watching.

The movie received an R rating due to strong language and graphic violence, and it has a runtime of 1 hour and 31 minutes. It was released in cinemas by Lionsgate on February 6, 2026. “Chapter 1” received mixed reviews, with critics giving it a 21% rating on the Tomatometer and audiences scoring it at 45%. “Chapter 2” fared worse with critics (14% Tomatometer score), but received a slightly better audience score of 54%.

Renny Harlin directed all three films, and Alan R. Cohen and Alan Freedland wrote the trilogy.

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2026-02-06 08:28